The Quote Project
by SpicyPepper-SweetSugar
Summary: A collection of stand-alone one-shots that aren't connected in any way, but are all inspired by various quotes/sayings/proverbs. Rated T, just in case, but at times, the rating might push a little toward M. If that is the case, there will be trigger warnings in the notes, so make sure to read those.
1. Irretrievable

**Note: Hey guys! So after asking on Tumblr which one-shot my lovely followers would like to read first (drunk!Felicity knocking on Oliver's door or angry!Felicity telling Oliver off) the second option got the most votes, which is why this one will be posted first! =)**

**So this is the first one-shot in a collection of one-shots inspired by quotes/proverbs/sayings and I can tell you right now that I'm not sure how big this collection will be or when it'll be finished, but know that I'll post all one-shots (that aren't connected at all) in the same story here on fanfiction. The story can also be read on Archive of Our Own, where the one-shots will be part of a collection, but separated.**

**Okay, now, this one-shot is a little different from what I've written before, so please be kind.**

**[Trigger warning: Implied rape and child abuse (but I don't really know if I should raise the rating to M, because it's not exactly something explicit...)]**

**Enjoy! **

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"_Irretrievable"_

**Word count: 2,970**

_Four things are irretrievable:_

It is common for people to regret having done or said something. Usually, there are a lot of things that can be taken back, but some, are irretrievable.

_An arrow in flight_

The three arrows pierced the Count's chest, one after one and for a brief second, Oliver was left staring as the criminal fell through the window, dead before even hitting the ground.

There were a lot of things that he wished he could take back in life. Cheating on Laurel and breaking her heart several times over, becoming a murderer that his best friend hated, not realizing there was a second device before it was ultimately too late... In summary, a lot of things, and the list would be way too long if he counted them all.

This though.

Watching the Count fall before his eyes, releasing the tight grip he had had on his blonde friend... That was something he would never take back.

Oliver could see that it bothered Felicity sometimes and that she felt guilty for making him kill. It had been his decision though. She had begged him not to break his promise-

"_Oliver, don't! Not for me!"_

-but he had reacted purely on instinct to the feelings that he had tried to bury deep, deep inside of himself.

He had told her that there had been no choice to make, which was probably one of the most truthful things he had ever told her. If he was forced to make the same choice again, he would; in a heartbeat.

Felicity might sometimes believe he wished to take it back, but he knew deep in his heart, that he never would.

_A spoken word_

It wasn't necessarily that things between them changed after that night in the mansion. After all, they had both been in on the ruse. But then, of course, the unexpected had happened.

"_I love you_."

The words had slipped out of his mouth before he could stop them, after he had internally gone through every single thing that could go wrong. Her reaction; the wide eyes and the fact that she hadn't been able to respond, had made him believe, if only for a second.

What if she loved him back?

Then, reality hit him, and he remembered what the plan was, so he gently pressed the syringe into her hand and got out of the mansion as fast as possible, silently promising not only her, but himself as well, that he would be back for her.

The city was saved, Slade was imprisoned, they had a talk on the beach and then returned to Starling City, expecting everything to go back to the way it was.

Except for the fact that it wasn't one hundred percent as it was _before_.

His hand lingered on her shoulder two seconds too long sometimes, their eyes always seemed to connect, unspoken words passing between them and she took the liberty of sometimes simply closing the distance between them and hold him whenever she saw that he needed it. He welcomed her, with open arms and neither of them brought up his words from that night again.

But he never took them back, because he knew it wasn't possible to do so. What had been said, had been said and it hung over the two of them no matter how much they tried to deny it.

After he had spoken the words, it was out there.

"_I love you_."

No matter what they did to act as if it hadn't changed them, they both knew it had. The words were now imprinted in their brains, and there was nothing either of them could do about it, because every night when they went to their respective beds, it was the last thing they though of and the first thing that crossed their minds when they woke up the next morning.

_A lost opportunity_

There had been so many times that he could have said the words to her again.

He had wanted to say it, but there was always something holding him back. So he tried to move on, with Laurel of all people.

When Diggle and Felicity had learned about their new relationship status, his eyes had been trained on solely Felicity, waiting for her reaction. Naturally, he felt horrible afterward, when he realized that he had wanted her to scream at him that Laurel wasn't the one for him and that he could never be happy with her because there was just too damn much history there to be able to move forward. He had wanted Felicity to throw her arms around him and tell him that she wanted him as much as he wanted her and it was this realization that made him feel awful.

She did none of those things though. Instead, she smiled at him and told him she only wanted what was best for him and that she was happy that he was happy.

It had been a low blow, but he had gotten over it.

Then, Felicity started seeing other people.

_Other people._ The term wasn't exactly correct since the two of them had never exactly been together, but for some reason, when he had bumped into her and her date while he was out with Laurel, he felt as if he had just caught her cheating on him. Yet again, the thought of how incredibly unfair and selfish it was crossed his mind.

They had a huge fight just a couple of weeks later and then Laurel broke up with him because she told him that it was pretty clear that he was acting like a jealous boyfriend whenever Felicity talked about her dates. He didn't exactly deny it, which made him realize yet again that yes; he was jealous.

He and Laurel tried to go back to being just friends and surprisingly enough, it worked well, after a couple of weeks of awkwardness between them.

His relationship with Felicity though, was another matter completely. They fought more than ever, mostly whenever he knew she was having a date with someone he knew didn't mean _anything_ to her. He was selfish because he pushed her away and then tried to draw her back in when he felt that he might loose her to someone else. She argued with him constantly because she felt stupid for allowing him to draw her back in, when she knew he ultimately wouldn't do anything about taking a step further into their relationship.

So when a mission went wrong and Felicity ended up in the hospital after taking a bullet to the abdomen for him, he was going out of his mind waiting for her to wake up. Diggle had left to call Lyla and fill her in on Felicity's situation, when the blonde woman finally began to wake up.

"I'm sorry," he said quickly, tears pricking his eyes, surprising even himself. Felicity watched him warily, before directing a glare his way.

"I took a bullet for you," she stated. "What exactly are _you_ sorry about?"

"It shouldn't have happened. It was my fault, all of it. We had that fight earlier, about Raymond, and I wasn't focused," he ranted. "I didn't see the shooter and I didn't ever hear the shot until you screamed and stood in front of me. I'm sorry."

She watched him warily, her glare still in place. "I still don't understand what you're sorry for. It wasn't your fault that I decided to stand between you and a gunman."

"It _was_," Oliver pressed. "I wasn't focused-"

"-because of _our_ fight_. _Right," Felicity bit out, "you said that already. So how exactly _isn't_ this my fault too?"

"Because I'm stupid, and jealous and I keep wanting to have you near me despite knowing that in the end, I'll probably end up getting you killed," he admitted, closing his eyes, wiping at his cheeks for any tears that might have fallen. It was all out there now.

"So stop pushing me away then, Oliver," Felicity all but snapped. "How can you not see that we both hurt more whenever we're apart?"

It seemed like the drugs the doctors had injected her with were making her brave.

"Felicity," he pleaded but she shook her head at him.

"You're not the only one in this world that is fucked up, Oliver!" she exclaimed, wincing when she accidentally moved a little too quickly. He cringed at her curse, not used to her using that kind of language and losing herself like this in an argument.

"But I am pretty fucked up," Oliver stated. "And you deserve so much better. You're so beautiful and so bright and happy... I'll only bring you down with me, taint you with my...my darkness."

"You think I haven't had a screwed up life?" she asked, a humorless laugh leaving her lips. "You think I've never had _darkness_ touch me?"

"Felicity, please..."

"No, Oliver," she protested. "If that is the _only_ reason that you're keeping me at arms length, then I want you to _wake up_ and see that I'm already screwed up as it is," she told him. "Sure, I don't know if living with someone who hates you and blames you for the fact that your father left you for half your life measures up to five years on an island, but let me tell you one thing: there are just as many emotional scars left behind from that first experience as the other."

"Felicity," he tried again, but she shook her head furiously at him as a tear rolled down her cheek.

"Or the fact that your mother brings home strange men, some of which find the little girl who was forced to grow up too quickly _attractive_ and just can't _help themselves_," she practically growled, disgust evident in her tone. Oliver himself felt sick to his stomach at what she was insinuating. "So you just fight tooth and nail in school so you can one day _get away_ from them all and never look back. You get good grades and get into MIT and you graduate and get a good job. But of course, not before your first real boyfriend cheats on you with your supposed best friend, and you find yourself in an abusive relationship because 'what else is to be expected from such a fuck up', right?" she lets out accompanied with a humorless laugh. "And then life goes on and you desperately cling to your belief that there are _good people _too in this horrible world you grew up in. Then, one day someone who was thought to be dead waltzes into your office with a bulled ridden computer, and changes everything, _for the better_. For the first time, in such a long, long time, you look into that someone's eyes and you don't see the person that was beaten down for years and you actually feel _loved_... But of course, 'because of the life you lead' and all that bullshit, you can't be with the person, no matter how strongly you feel about them," she finished bitterly, her eyes never faltering as she meets his gaze.

He's having trouble breathing suddenly, because he never actually realized... He never knew. No background check he'd run on her told him about the circumstances of her upbringing and nothing could have prepared him for this revelation.

How was it possible for someone so bright and colorful to have had such a dark and horrible childhood?

How was he supposed to fight it now? Fight _them_ now, when he realized that she had practically just told him that he was the best thing that had ever happened to her?

He knew that his reasons for pushing her away were fading quickly in his mind and the walls he had set up between them were crumbling as he looked into her eyes and spoke, "I feel very strongly about you too, Felicity."

His voice had been a mere whisper but she stubbornly kept glaring at him.

"Are you going to do anything about it, or are you going to let me go?" she asked defiantly. "I can't keep holding on to the illusion of a happy ending with the two of us if it's only going to be an _illusion_, Oliver."

He stared at her for a good while before taking her hand in his and bringing it up to his lips, kissing it softly.

"This is your only chance, Oliver," she continued, despite him closing his eyes after his lips connected with her knuckles. "What's it going to be?"

"You," he finally answered. "It's always going to be you."

_A life already spent_

He walked into the room, tired and worn out after a long day. Removing his clothes and stepping into his pajamas, he turned to look at the woman who was sleeping on the bed. Her glasses were on her nightstand and he walked to the master bathroom, brushing his teeth and washing his face before putting on his night shirt, covering the scars he had gotten in his younger years.

For a moment, he looked at himself in the mirror, his blue eyes sparkling with excitement despite his exhaustion. When he thought of how he had looked in his younger years, he barely recognized himself anymore. Of course, he had allowed himself to age with dignity, mostly because his wife had told him that they would not become that old couple that clung to their youth desperately, while everyone around them grew up and aged.

He shook his head, his mouth twitching as a smile grew on his lips before he headed back into the bedroom to join the woman on the bed.

"Hey," she said tiredly, curling up next to him. "How did it go tonight?"

"Good," he answered. "The kid is getting better each day, especially now that Roy and Connor are helping with the training when I don't have time."

"He'll do good, Oliver," she smiled at him. "Especially since he helped train his sister too."

"I know, Felicity," Oliver sighed. "I just feel so old sometimes, and now that Connor has officially become the Arrow, I feel a little useless at times."

"You're not useless, Oliver," Felicity told him. "You're his father. You're _their_ father; all of them. They are your legacy."

Oliver brought Felicity's hand up to his lips and kissed it before gingerly touching the rings that were on her left ring finger. "_Our_ legacy," he corrected her. "We've spent most of our lives perfecting the team and neither one of us could have done it alone."

"Not only that," she smiled, "but we also managed to raise a family together and we actually had time for barbeques from time to time...and holiday celebrations."

"Yeah," he grinned back. "And I actually got to grow old with the person I love most in this world."

The way her eyes sparkled for a moment made his mind go back to the first time he had laid eyes on her, down in her cubicle in the IT-apartment. As he gently drew his fingers through her graying hair, he once again saw that beautiful, young and quirky blonde that he had fallen so deeply in love with. She might not be blonde anymore, but she was still the most beautiful person he had ever met; inside and out.

"You got to hang up the hood and pass it on, to the next generation," she nodded, reaching up to press her lips gently to his. "You became a mentor to the kids and you got everything you've ever wanted."

"Along with some things that I never knew I wanted," he added, "but it wouldn't have felt so amazing if I hadn't have had you by my side."

He brushed his lips against hers again and she smiled into the kiss. No matter how many years he had spent kissing her, he would never grow tired of it.

"No regrets then?" she wondered.

"No regrets," he confirmed. "Except for maybe not getting my head out of my ass sooner. I could have had you at least two years earlier, had I not been so stubborn to protect you."

"You always had me, Oliver," she whispered, resting her head on his chest. "From the moment you said my name when you came for my help the first time."

"Is that so?" he mused. "Is this the moment I tell you that you had me the second you told me to get away from you because you had a bomb collar stuck around your neck?"

"No, it's the moment you admit that you're still stubbornly sticking to that story, despite the fact that we both know that I had you the second I started rambling about you being alive and not drowning when that yacht went down," she laughed. "It was the head tilt though, right?" she asked, looking up at him.

He cupped her cheek and brushed it with his thumb as he met her eyes again. "It was definitively the head tilt," he nodded.

"And despite everything that we've been though, I'm going to say that we've had a life well spent," she told him, her lips once again connecting with his.

"Yeah," he affirmed, smiling up at her as her curls fell around her face. His mind traveled to their younger years, when she had looked down at him, just like this after they had spent their first night together, and she had told him that she loved him and he had said it back without a seconds hesitation.

He drew her closer to him and his fingers tangled in her hair as he pulled her in, pressing his lips to hers yet again.

"Definitively a life well spent," he murmured, smiling into the kiss.

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**Note: Reviews are golden! =) **


	2. In Vino Veritas

**Note: Hey guys! This is the second quote inspired one-shot (the one with drunk!Felicity)! Hopefully, you'll like it and I'll be keeping this note short.**

**The only warning I have for this one-shot is that it miiiight hint on some mature themes, so those of you who are younger *cough cough*...well... Close your eyes? I don't know, it's not really that mature, but still, it's just a little warning in case so i don't get any hate for it! ^^**

**Enjoy!**

**P.S. I'm feel like I'm being way too nice, posting fics this often! ^^ But you guys are so wonderful, that you deserve them!**

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"_In Vino Veritas" - Latin saying_

_(Translation: In wine [there is] truth)_

**Word Count: 3,098**

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The knocking just wouldn't _stop_.

Oliver groaned, turning on his side and putting his pillow over his head, trying desperately to stop the noise from reaching his ears.

_Knock, knock, knock_, it continued, despite his efforts to shut it out. He let out a loud sigh and glanced at the digital clock on the microwave- which had been a housewarming gift from Felicity despite him telling her that he didn't want any gifts- in his kitchen: _2.22 Am._

Who the hell would come knocking at 2.22 Am on a Friday night?

The sound continued and Oliver once again let out a frustrated groan before forcing himself to get up from his pullout couch that was currently his bed, heading for the door.

There weren't many who knew the location of the small apartment he had rented after spending a couple of weeks jumping between Diggle and Felicity's couches following the final battle against Slade. In his mind, he counted through the small amount of people who knew where he was currently residing in his head.

The first one that came to mind, was Roy. The younger man had spent many nights at Oliver's place after Thea had disappeared but usually, he called before dropping by so that Oliver would be able to prepare his make-shift bed which consisted of an inflatable mattress, a pillow and a blanket. The fact that there hadn't been a phone call, and that he had seen Roy just two hours ago before they had ended this nights patrolling, meant that he could rule out Roy as the potential visitor.

Lyla and Diggle were spending the weekend together at their own place, renovating their little guestroom and making it into a small nursery for their baby, which meant that they most likely would not come knocking on his door this late.

It wouldn't make any sense for Laurel to drop by either, since they had decided on meeting up for lunch tomorrow. Honestly, when she had asked him to accompany her earlier after he had dropped off some files that Felicity had obtainedto help her with a case, he had been quite surprised. Sure, since Slade's attack on Starling City and her finding out the truth about his alter ego, the two of them had met up from time to time when it came to cases and he had casually mentioned that he had gotten himself an apartment after she had offered to take him in for a couple of weeks. Because of their past, he had figured it would be better to alternate between spending the night in either Felicity's town house or Diggle's apartment, so had always declined kindly. The team hadn't told her the location of their new and improved lair either, but that was because they wanted it to be as secure as possible and the fewer people that knew about it, the better.

This only left Felicity.

Oliver looked through the peephole and indeed, was met by the sight of blonde curls and bright blue eyes. He swallowed thickly and tried to rub the tiredness out of his eyes as he opened the door.

"Felicity?" he asked. "What are you doing here?"

"Oliver!" she exclaimed, a little too enthusiastically if he were to be honest. "What took you so long? I've been standing here for ages!"

The strong smell of tequila hit him as she spoke and he took a step back from her, now noticing the small swaying motion she was making. She was clearly having trouble standing still.

"Are you drunk?" Oliver asked, the sleepiness instantly disappearing from his body as he looked at his blonde IT-girl worriedly. She had mentioned that some of her friends from MIT were in town, but he had never guessed that she would be going out clubbing with them. Clearly, he had been wrong in assuming that they'd have some quiet dinner to talk about where they were in their lives.

"As as a _trunk_," she giggled before once again frowning. "Or is it 'skunk'?" She closed her eyes briefly and then opened them, taking a step forward before closing them quickly. "Everything is spinning," she informed him and he took a step toward her, gently taking a hold of her elbow and leading her inside. He couldn't just leave her out there alone and who knew how she had gotten here?

"I walked!" she happily informed him as he made her sit down on the one armchair he owned. Huh, he must have thought out loud. Was that something he had picked up on from her? "You should be impressed by that," she told him, "considering that I'm seeing two of you at the moment. I didn't even trip! Okay, so _one_ time I think I might have stepped on a cat...or it might have been a squirrel, or a shadow-"

"Just sit here while I get you some water," Oliver said, not being able to help the smile that crept up his face.

"No, no, no!" she quickly said, taking a hold of his hand. He looked down at her and for the first time tonight, he took in her appearance.

She was wearing a short black dress with long sleeves, which was unusual for her, considering she always wore bright colors at the office. It was tight and the black strap high-heels she wore with it made her legs look unbelievably long. Of course, since she had been out with her friends, it made sense that she would wear something like..._that._

Oliver swallowed.

The pictures that filled his head were most certainly not PG-rated and he had to force himself to focus on her face so that he wouldn't look at her cleavage, which was very much on display. After all, he was a man and he had always found Felicity to be _attractive_, to say the least.

"What?" he asked, clearing his throat. His mouth suddenly going dry.

"I came here for a reason!" Felicity told him. "I came here to tell you that I am so, _so_," she drew it out, "_over _you."

What?

"What do you mean you're 'over me'?" Oliver inquired, slowly getting on his knees so that he could sit in front of her and meet her gaze. She wasn't wearing her usual glasses, but either way she looked absolutely stunning. His heart beat a little faster as he put his hand on her shoulder and she shrugged it off.

"No!" she exclaimed. "I'm over your stupid platonic shoulder touches, your stupid smiles and the stupid little moments we share sometimes! I'm over the way you sometimes just hold my gaze and then look away when Diggle catches your stupid look and you instead look so _stupidly _guilty for some reason! Most of all, I'm over the fake I-love-you's and your stupidly handsome face," she ranted, an angry frown adorning her face as she moved her finger in a circle, pointing out said 'stupidly handsome face'.

Oliver was impressed by the fact that she hadn't slurred a bit as she had spoken. She had sounded very sober in her little speech, but he knew that she was still drunk since she never would have said anything like this to him if she hadn't been intoxicated.

"So, to summarize," Oliver said, "you think I'm stupid?"

Felicity eyed him before looking up at the ceiling, as if she was looking for the answer somewhere in the back of her brain. "Yeah," she confirmed, finally looking down at him again. "So you can go ahead and be with Laurel- _gorgeous _Laurel- if you want to, because I _don't_ care anymore."

"Laurel?" he frowned. Now, where had _that_ come from?

"You're going to '_lunch'_ tomorrow," Felicity told him, using air-quotations at the word 'lunch'. "I heard you over the comms and I thought to myself, 'How could I be so _stupid_ to think that the golden couple wouldn't be reunited now that the Arrow's identity has been revealed?'" she said.

The word 'stupid' seemed to be used a lot tonight.

"But I'm over it, _Ollie_," Felicity spat, and Oliver winced as he heard his old nickname coming from her lips. It hurt more than it should, hearing her use it. He wasn't 'Ollie' to her... He was Oliver...just..._Oliver_.

Silence fell between them as he let her words sink in. He kept staring at her stern face, trying to think of what to say, not even knowing if she would remember anything tomorrow.

Felicity's face suddenly fell and softened a bit as her hand fell over his, which he had absentmindedly put on her knee. "But I am so _not_ over it," she admitted with a groan. "I'm a liar, Oliver. I am _not_ over it and it _hurts_ so much, because I love you and you don't even know it. It was a part of our plan, _I know_, but you surprised me and all I just... I-I just _fell_. So goddamn hard and so goddamn quick that I didn't even realize it until tonight when Laurel asked you to lunch."

She loved him.

She. Loved. _Him_.

How was he supposed to tell her that he had meant it that night? That it hadn't all been a ruse to trick Slade? How was he supposed to tell her that those 'stupid platonic shoulder touches' weren't platonic _at all_, but actually his way of telling her silently that he had her back and that she had his and that he loved her for it? How was he supposed to tell her that he loved her too, when she most likely wouldn't remember a thing tomorrow?

"Come on, Felicity," he said instead. "Let's get you to bed."

"Okay," she agreed quietly, her head hanging like a little kid's after being caught doing something bad. He carefully removed her shoes and helped her to his pull-out couch where he had been laying earlier before she had woken him up.

"Sit here and I'll find you something comfortable to put on," he instructed and once again she nodded. He walked over to the small dresser and pulled out his black t-shirt. It was a little loose on him too, so it would most likely be comfortable for her too. He looked for some sweatpants too, finding a pair of navy ones before turning around to face her again.

His jaw nearly hit the floor the moment he laid eyes on her. She was turned with her back toward him, slowly shimmying out of her dress, letting it fall to the floor. The black lace hipsters she was wearing and the matching black bra were the only articles of clothing on her body, and they didn't do much to cover up the fact that she had _clearly_ been working out lately.

Once again, Oliver's head was filled with _very_ inappropriate images, some of her toned legs wrapping around him and others of his lips on her back as she arched into him...

He stood frozen as he watched Felicity move her long curls over her left shoulder before reaching for the clasp on her bra. As he realized what she was about to do, he quickly stepped forward, stopping her. "Wait!" he exclaimed, a little weaker than he had wanted to. She turned around and faced him, looking at him as if he had grown a second head and acting strangely. As if it was perfectly normal for her to undress in front of him.

God, in that moment Oliver wished it was a normal occurrence for them.

"I, uhm... You should put on this before taking that off," he said, offering her the shirt and motioning to her bra. He was trying very hard not to notice the fact that it was clearly a push-up bra, but yeah...he _noticed_.

"Oh, right," she grinned, as if she didn't even see that he was struggling not to ogle her body. She pulled on his shirt and then proceeded to remove her bra, throwing it carelessly on the floor next to her abandoned dress. "I won't be needing those," she said pointedly, almost glaring at the sweatpants. "It's very hot in here."

"Sure is," Oliver muttered, throwing the sweatpants on the armchair that she had been sitting in previously, trying to catch a breath. "You can take the pull-out," he told her then as she sat down on it, bouncing lightly. He closed his eyes and pinched the brig of his nose. He needed to pull himself together. Even though she had confessed her love for him and was currently sitting on his bed with less clothing than she would normally wear around him, she was actually _drunk_, which meant he needed to control himself.

He watched as she made herself comfortable, covering only her stomach with the blanket while her bare legs remained uncovered. "Aren't you coming?" Felicity pouted, looking his way as she patted the place next to herself.

"No, not tonight," he told her. "You should sleep though and I'll just..." he trailed off, realizing she had already fallen asleep. Walking toward her, he gently brushed away one of her curls from her cheek and put it behind her ear. As a response to his soft caress she smiled contently and nuzzled further into the pillow- _his_ pillow.

Oliver grabbed inflatable mattress and put it on the floor next to her and made himself comfortable. For a while, he just watched her sleeping face, so relaxed and so beautiful before drifting off to sleep as well.

-§-

The next morning, he was woken by someone gently poking his arm. He opened his eyes to see Felicity peering down at him from above and for a second, he wondered whether he was still dreaming.

"Morning," he whispered, absentmindedly reaching up to touch her cheek. She remained frozen above him. "How are you feeling?" he asked her.

"Good morning," she replied, her voice a little raspy. "Like _hell_," she admitted, her eyes falling half-shut at his touch.

"How much do you remember of last night?" he inquired then, his hand remaining on her cheek.

"Not much," she sheepishly said. "I know that I went out with my friends, but I don't remember anything after my seventh shot..."

"So you don't remember how you got here or anything that happened after that?" he asked. Truthfully, he was a little disappointed when she shook her head, but at the same time, this meant he could make things right between them.

"Why? Did I say something last night?" she panicked, instantly leaning away from him. "Oh _God_, please don't tell me I told you about my sixteenth birthday party! I swear, I didn't mean to knee the clown in the groin, but he was creepy and I mean, what normal person gets a clown to drop by at a _sweet sixteen_ party? I didn't speak to my mother for a week after that incident... And okay, I totally kneed him on purpose."

Letting out an amused chuckle Oliver shook his head. "You didn't share any awkward memories, Felicity," he told her.

"Good," she nodded, before once again letting her eyes widen. "And what I just said stays between the two of us!"

"Of course," Oliver promised as he reached for his phone, contemplating how to approach the situation with him and Felicity carefully. He had been thinking about telling her how he feels for months now, but it never seemed like the right time. There was always some new threat, always a new mission or a new meeting with the lawyers to try and get back his family company.

Maybe there wasn't a right time? Maybe Diggle was right and he just needed to dive in, head first?

"How about we stay here today?" he suggested. "We take the day off and watch movies while you rest through your hangover?"

"Aren't you going to lunch with Laurel?" Felicity blinked and he shook his head.

"I just texted her that I couldn't make it," he informed her.

"Oliver, you really didn't have to-"

"I did, Felicity," he interrupted her, sitting up and gently putting his hand over hers. "I _really_ did."

For a long moment, they just looked at each other. She broke the silence by clearing her throat. "Well, are you going to put on a movie and join me in bed or what?" she asked, her eyes widening a second later. "And by join me on bed, I _clearly_ mean joining me on the pull-out! Like, to watch a movie, because I think it's more comfortable in here. I mean, I know I slept incredibly and not just because of the fact that I was drunk out of my mind or that the the bed smelled like you- Oh God, it's too early for this," she groaned, slapping her forehead. "Just get in bed," she said, deciding to ignore how suggestive it sounded.

Oliver chuckled before standing up. He just started the DVD, knowing there was a movie in there already since their last movie night had ended abruptly when she had gotten an alert on a robbery going down, and then settled next to her.

"I say the stupidest things sometimes," Felicity grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest.

"We're all stupid sometimes, Felicity," Oliver smiled. "I know I've been stupidly blind for a long time, but luckily, I'm just starting to open my eyes."

He slipped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her a little closer to him as he threw the blanket over his legs to join her under the covers. He turned to look down at her, noticing a faint blush creeping up her cheeks, but he just smiled, gently squeezing her shoulder. A few seconds later, she moved closer to him so that she was pressed to his side and his arm dropped to rest around her waist as her head fell on his shoulder. One of her hands rested on his chest, right where his heart was and Oliver closed his eyes, imagining what it would be like to wake up like this with Felicity every

morning.

-§-

That morning changed things for the two of them, and it wasn't until almost two months later when they lay in _her_ bed that he told her of the night that she had basically started stripped in front of him. She had blushed furiously and hit him with a pillow, but then kissed his lips softly when he had joked about not having anything against a repeat of the show.

In the end, he was the one to strip for her.

* * *

**Note: ****I've read a lot of fics where Oliver comes knocking on Felicity's door while he's drunk and him then confessing his love for her, so I sort of wanted to do it the other way around, where Felicity comes knocking and is the first one to actually admit her feelings for him... while being stupidly drunk... ^^ ****I really hope you liked it! Feel free to leave a comment! =) Lots of love! xx**


	3. House Guests and Domesticity

_**Note: Hey guys! So this one-shot was completely random and I was inspired to write it after discussing the things I want to see in season 3 of Arrow with **NerdyAddict** here on fanfiction. I mentioned wanting to see more of Roy and Felicity bonding as friends, mostly because of the fact that I LOVED the scene where Felicity basically lies to Roy so that he won't have to feel guilty about what he did when he was under the effect of the Mirakuru.**_

_**And then, I figured it would be really funny to write a one-shot with Felicity, Roy and Oliver all living together in her town house... So I did! ;)**_

_**Anyway, **NerdyAddict**, I might have added a few words here and there, but I haven't changed anything major, but this one-shot is dedicated to you! ;)**_

_**I hope you all enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it! =)**_

* * *

"**House Guests and Domesticity"**

**Word count: 8,138**

* * *

"_Every house where love abides, _

_And friendship is a guest, _

_Is surely home, and home, sweet home,_

_For there the heart can rest." _

_~Henry van Dyke_

It hadn't exactly been a secret, so Felicity didn't understand what the big deal was when it finally came out. She wasn't one to keep things from her team members, and since this particular 'issue' involved the fourth member of Team Arrow, she really didn't understand why Oliver had reacted the way he had.

"Roy, don't forget that we have to pick up a few things from the store tonight before we go home," she said over the comm.

"_Detergent! Write it down before you forget! My hoodie needs washing,_" Roy reminded her before Oliver and Diggle cleared their throats at the same time. Felicity turned around and looked at the older man who had stayed behind with her in the new lair. He had raised his eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Have we missed something?" he asked her.

"_Why are you and Roy buying detergent together?_" Oliver asked over the comm. "_Felicity?_"

"Oh, right," Felicity mentally slapped herself. "You guys don't know that Roy and I are living together!"

"_You're what?_" Oliver snapped.

"_Dude, stop giving me the Arrow-glare,_" Roy complained.

"_Felicity!_" Oliver's voice sounded again and Felicity shook her head at them both, despite knowing that they couldn't see her.

"I'll explain when you get here. It's no big deal, so stop overreacting, Oliver," she muttered before cutting of the link. She quickly wrote down 'detergent' on a post it so she wouldn't forget. Roy was right; she _did _have a habit of forgetting at least one thing every time she went to the store if she didn't write it down.

She turned around to face Diggle again, who remained standing with his eyebrows raised, waiting for her to explain what she had accidentally revealed a minute ago. She shot him a look and he shrugged at her, understanding that he would get the explanation once Oliver and Roy got back from patrolling.

Fifteen minutes later, Roy was walking down the stairs hurriedly, obviously trying to get away from Oliver who was not more than two steps behind him. "Please get him away from me," Roy complained, removing his red mask. "He's been practically interrogating me since you shut off the comm."

Felicity shot a glare at Oliver, who immediately reciprocated it. "I told you I would explain when you got here," Felicity said with a sigh, "so I don't understand why you're making such a big deal out of Roy living with me."

"You haven't exactly explained anything yet, Felicity," Oliver pointed out. "So why don't you go ahead and do just that; _explain._"

Felicity rolled her eyes at him and leaned back in her chair. She turned to address Roy first, "Why don't you go wash up so we can leave and maybe get home earlier?" The young man nodded, sending another glare at Oliver before heading for the shower, grabbing his clothes on his way there. Felicity turned to face the other two members of Team Arrow, who were both watching her expectantly.

"It's actually a really short story," Felicity explained. "Roy's neighborhood in the Glades wasn't safe to begin with and after Slade's attack, the crime went up even more so there have been a lot of break-ins there. Also, since you no longer own Verdant and the club has been out of business since the building was signed over to Isabel," she shot a pointed look at Oliver and his eyes flickered away for a second, "Roy hasn't been able to get a job. He mentioned this one night while we were watching a movie and I invited him to stay with me. I wanted the company and I figured it would be mutually beneficial." She inhaled sharply. "And by mutually beneficial, I'm not talking about any kind of sexual benefits. I mean, Roy's a good looking guy and all that, and you've been rubbing off on him Oliver, because he's really comfortable with walking around shirtless- Which is _fine_!" she quickly added. "I mean, if I can walk around wearing yoga-pants and a sports bra every Sunday morning, I should be fine with him walking around shirtless, which I _am_! Where was I going with this...?" She trailed off and blinked a few times, looking at Oliver and Diggle who were staring at her. Oliver's eyes looked as if they were going to pop out of his head while Diggle was smirking, clearly amused by the way she once again suffered because of her lack of brain-to-mouth filter.

"Mutually beneficial?" Diggle supplied playfully and she nodded.

"Right," she swallowed. "I mean, we keep each other company."

She decided that it might be better if she just stopped talking before she headed into way too deep waters again. Diggle seemed to accept her explanation, but Oliver had looked as if someone had just force-fed him a lemon.

"How long have the two of you been living together?" he asked.

"Uh," she counted the days quickly in her head, "a month and a half maybe? Since we finished up the new lair?"

"_A_ _month and a half_ and it never occurred to you to tell me- _us_ about your new living arrangements?" Oliver pretty much demanded.

Felicity felt annoyance bubble up inside of her because Oliver really didn't have a right to act the way he was acting. "It wasn't a secret, Oliver," she bit out. "And besides, we didn't really see how it mattered anyway. I mean, you have been staying in Diggle's apartment since you lost the mansion, so what's different about Roy staying with me?"

The challenge hung in the air and Oliver's eyes seemed to shoot invisible arrows at her. A smirk tugged on her lips because she knew that she had him and that she had won this battle. Before she could add anything to her statement, Roy walked out of the bathroom and walked over to her, grabbing her coat on the way. He held it up for her and helped her put it on and Felicity just couldn't help but notice how Oliver glared at the younger man.

"Let's head out before the store closes," Roy muttered, meeting Felicity's eyes.

"I'll drive," Felicity said, turning to look at the other two men once more. "Good night guys. We'll see you tomorrow," she happily said before walking out of the lair with Roy following her.

"You know Oliver is going to be insufferable from now on, right?" Roy asked her when they got into her mini.

"Why would he be insufferable?" she frowned, putting the car in drive.

"Oh, I have _no idea_," Roy sarcastically puffed, rolling his eyes at her.

"Do you know something that I don't?" Felicity quipped, sending him a side way glance.

"Nothing that isn't obvious," he muttered under his breath while Felicity pretended not to hear him.

-§-

It turned out that Oliver wouldn't become _completely_ insufferable. Actually, from Felicity's point of view, he hadn't been acting very differently since he had learned about her and Roy living together. He actually never brought it up to her again and honestly, it seemed like he was more relaxed around her. So when Roy started complaining one night when they got ready to marathon the third season of _Supernatural_, Felicity was surprised to hear what he had to say.

"Oliver has been horrible to me this week," Roy complained as he took a spoon-full of the ice-cream she was holding.

"What are you talking about?" Felicity asked. "He's been nice."

"Yeah, in front of _you_," Roy said. "As soon as you turn your back on us, he's basically murdering me ten different ways inside of his head and projecting his anger by giving me his Arrow-look."

Felicity laughed, taking a bite from the ice-cream tub. "Really? It can't be that bad..." she trailed off as Roy pulled down his shirt to expose a bruise on his shoulder. "Oliver did that?" she asked, touching the bruise gently.

"It wasn't on purpose," Roy said. "Or at least that's what he said. Things got a little rough during sparring after you so casually mentioned that I shouldn't just throw your underwear into your drawer without folding your panties first."

Felicity's face heated up and she could feel the blush spreading across her cheeks. "I said that out loud?"

"Loud enough for Oliver to hear," Roy answered. "And _clearly_, he doesn't like thinking about me going anywhere near your underwear."

Felicity poked him on his bruise and he let out an undignified cry. "Or maybe I accidentally made him uncomfortable by talking about thongs and hipster-panties?" Her innocent suggestion earned her an eye-roll from Roy.

"Yeah, keep telling yourself that."

-§-

A week later, Oliver approached Felicity while they were alone in the lair. Diggle and Roy had headed out to get them something to eat while they planned for a mission that would be going down in a few days. Felicity was checking the security detail on the building they would be breaking into when she felt Oliver's hand come to rest on her shoulder.

"Hey," he said softly, making her turn around to acknowledge him.

"Hi," she smiled back. "Everything okay?" His grip on her shoulder loosened and he let his arm fall back to rest by his side as he shifted from one foot to the other.

"Yeah, everything is fine," he told her. "It's just that I've been thinking a lot lately..." he trailed off and she tilted her head before turning around in her chair, giving him her full attention.

"About what?"

She was well aware that Oliver wasn't the best at coming up with the words to say and she didn't want to pressure him. Instead, she simply offered him a small smile and waited for him to figure out how he wanted to approach whatever it was that was bothering him.

"Well, you see," Oliver began, "Lyla is moving into Diggle's apartment and they have a baby on the way."

"I am very much aware of that," Felicity asserted, earning a small smile from Oliver.

"You also know that I've been staying at Dig's place since I lost the mansion, but now I'm afraid I might become the third wheel and I really don't want to impose on them any longer than I absolutely have to."

"Oliver, you're starting to ramble," Felicity grinned. "Where exactly is all this going?"

"I was going to ask you if I could stay at your place for a week or two," he admitted. "At least until I can find myself an apartment of my own. I mean, we still haven't gotten a cot down here in the lair and I don't want to make you uncomfortable. Also, I know that Roy is living with you already, so it's fine if you don't have room for me. I'll understand if you say no-"

"Oliver, it's fine," Felicity interrupted. Maybe they were all rubbing off on each other? Her rambling seemed to be contagious at least.

Oliver's eyes brightened up like a kid's on Christmas and for a second, it felt as if the air had left Felicity's lungs completely. His happiness at her words caught her off guard and she couldn't help but smile back at him.

"Are you absolutely sure?" Oliver asked.

"Yeah, of course," Felicity beamed. "I swear, it's no problem. As long as you don't mind sharing the guestroom with Roy?" It was spoken as a question and Oliver looked at her curiously, clearly expecting her to explain why he would need to share a room with the youngest member of team Arrow. "When I moved into my town house, the movers mixed up my instructions and put my things in the real guest room, which was smaller, while the things for the guestroom ended up in the master bedroom. I never really had time to change it back and by the time I had time again, I had just gotten used to the small cozier room so I never switched."

"And Roy won't mind sharing the room?" Oliver tried to assure and she shook her head.

"Of course not. It's my house, my rules, after all, right?" she winked. "I'll tell him tonight and you pack up your things from Diggle's and then you can move in by the end of the week. Does that sound okay?"

Oliver surprised her by leaning down and pressing his lips to her forehead. Once again, her breath caught in her throat. "What was that for?" she squeaked, her mouth going dry and her forehead burning from his touch, almost making her question whether it was a good idea to let Oliver move in, temporarily even.

"You, Felicity Smoak, are remarkable," Oliver smiled at her before turning his back to her and walking off to the salmon ladder. Her face was warm and she knew she was probably beet-red in the face, but his answer still made her smile. With it, her doubts disappeared as well and she couldn't wait to hear what Roy had to say about welcoming another house guest.

-§-

"Have I been a bad roommate to you?" Roy asked her when they got home that night.

"You've been wonderful, Roy," Felicity replied, unlocking the front door. She entered the house and put the keys in the purple bowl on top of the small table in the hallway as she ascended the stairs to her bedroom.

"Then why are you playing with my life?" Roy croaked as he followed her upstairs. She stepped into her bedroom and started taking off her coat and her boots.

"I'm not playing with your life," she pointed out. "I've just agreed to let Oliver stay here for a while, until he gets his own apartment."

"Which is basically the same thing," Roy protested. "It's enough that I have him hounding me in the lair and when we're on patrol, but to have him _here _too? In the one place that used to be Oliver-free? That will be the death of me!"

"Roy," Felicity chuckled. "I swear, if Oliver tries to hound you here too, I'll make sure he regrets it."

"He doesn't have a bank account that you can empty, Felicity!" Roy reminded her.

She picked up her pajamas and took out a towel from a drawer before walking over to the bathroom. Before she closed the door, she turned around and winked at Roy playfully, "There are plenty of other ways to make a man regret doing something, Roy."

-§-

The day that Oliver moved in, he and Roy managed to surprise her in the best way possible. Things between them might have been a little tense the first hour or so as Felicity helped Oliver unpack some of his things and Roy simply stood by the door with his arms crossed until Felicity scolded him and told him to get over to them and help. All of the sudden, the two men were bonding over their love for archery and training and Roy suggested that Oliver joined him for the early morning run that had become a part of his daily routine. Felicity smiled at them both, happy that they were being civil with each other before telling them that they will have to re-divide the chores so that they all have something to do each day of the week.

They fell into a routine quickly and one night, when Felicity sits in her armchair while watching the two of them have an archery contest on her _Wii_, she wonders how she got so lucky to have the two men in her life.

-§-

It's too good to be true of course, because when have Oliver and Roy ever gotten along for more than five days in a row since they got to know each other? On the sixth day of living together, they come back from their run, both of them bristling with anger.

Felicity is sitting the kitchen, having her morning coffee in silence when she hears Oliver's voice, "I told you to stop asking me about it!" before the door to their room is slammed shut. Felicity cringes and sets down her mug, watching curiously as Roy passes through the hallway, following Oliver into their room.

"And I told you it was just a simple question that you should be able to answer!" he shouted back. Once again, Felicity jumped when the door slammed shut again. She blinked a couple of times, happy that the isolation in her house was good and didn't let any sounds come in or out of the bedrooms. Sipping her coffee carefully, she decided it might be better to let them deal with their issues alone. It was exactly like when Oliver and Diggle fought about something; she wanted to stay as neutral as possible, but if the two of them needed a push, she'd talk to them both individually later.

When they came out of the room half an hour later, they both greeted her with a "Good morning," but acted as if they hadn't just had a fight. They fell back into their routine, Roy making scrambled eggs for the three of them, Oliver mixing a fruit salad and Felicity drinking her coffee calmly while watching them.

Neither said anything about the fight and they didn't bring it up again.

-§-

Roy and Oliver developed a thing for bickering over the smallest things though. Usually, Felicity would just sit on the couch, watching them amused while they tried to get her on their side.

"Do you see _this_?" Oliver asked, holding up his now pink dress shirt. "This was _white_ when I put it in the washer this morning!"

Roy scoffed, putting his hands in his pockets. "So? You probably messed up and put a red sock in it like you did the first time," he shrugged.

Felicity almost giggled when she saw a slight blush creeping up on Oliver's cheeks. Whether it was from annoyance or embarrassment, she didn't know, so she decided to not say anything and just enjoy her ice-cream while they argued.

"No, I _didn't_, because Felicity taught me how to do the laundry, and I haven't messed up since that first time," Oliver argued, looking at Felicity for confirmation.

She swallowed the bite of ice-cream in her mouth and nodded, holding up a finger and pointing it at Oliver while looking at Roy. "That's true," she acknowledged.

"But that doesn't mean that _I _was the one to mess his clothes up," Roy protested.

"I found _your _hoodie in the washing machine, Roy! Tell me how it isn't your fault," Oliver challenged.

Felicity took another spoon-full of her ice-cream and looked between the two of them as if a tennis-game was going on. She watched as Roy's shoulders slumped in defeat and his face fell. "I'm sorry, Oliver," he sighed. "I was in a hurry to get out this morning and I just threw it in and turned it on. I didn't check what kind of clothes were being washed."

Oliver leaned back a little and looked at him. Felicity was shocked to see that Oliver clearly hadn't expected Roy to give up the fight so easily. "It's, uh, okay," he said, a little uncertainly.

"No, dude, I'll pay you back for the shirts as soon as I get a job," Roy insisted.

"There's no need," Oliver said. "I have plenty of other shirts. Curse of being a Queen, I suppose. Always have to have an extra shirt or two."

"But it was my fault-" Roy began again, but Oliver held up a hand to stop him.

"It's okay, Roy," Oliver persisted. "Really. Besides, I think pink looks really good on me," he said with a grin.

Roy chuckled and shook his head a little and Felicity couldn't help the little squeaky sound that escaped her throat. They both turned to look at her and she blushed.

"Sorry!" she exclaimed. "It's just that I really find it adorable how the two of you manage to sort things out by yourselves without me having to intervene. I mean, a minute ago the testosterone was so high in the room that it felt as if I would suffocate or grow a mustache, especially considering how you're both shirtless and sweaty from working out earlier." She blinked. "Not that I'm complaining over the fact that you're both shirtless, and I'm not insinuating that I enjoy watching you fight while shirtless, but I mean, I'm a girl and I certainly don't mind considering that you're both very, _very_ good looking and..." She trailed off when she realized that they were looking at her strangely. Actually, they weren't looking at her _strangely_, per se. They were looking quite amused actually. If only the couch could open up and swallow her whole.

She shoved another spoon of mint chip ice-cream into her mouth to prevent herself from speaking.

"I'm glad that out lack of clothing doesn't bother you, Felicity," Oliver teased.

"Yeah. We would hate it if you didn't get your daily dose of man-candy," Roy said, catching on easily.

"I think I preferred when the two of you were arguing and not ganging up on me," Felicity groaned, earning a chuckle from both of them.

"Well, I think I better go shower then," Roy stated. "Are we going to watch a movie or are we going straight to bed?"

"I'm up for a movie if you two are," Felicity supplied, looking at Oliver.

"I actually thought about going to bed earlier so we could get up earlier tomorrow," Oliver shrugged. "But a movie sounds fine. Roy, go wash up and don't take too long because I need a shower too," he ordered as the two of them walked out of the living room toward their shared bedroom.

Felicity watched their bare backs as they walked out, muscles flexing with each movement. She scooped up the rest of her ice-cream and licked her lips.

Nope.

She definitively didn't mind them walking around shirtless.

-§-

Oliver's one-to-two weeks quickly turned into two months, not that she minded. She would never admit it to anyone, but after everything that had gone down with Slade, she still had nightmares about what could have gone wrong, and she felt a lot safer having her two friends in her house with her.

_Their_ house, because that was what it was now.

Like all roommates they had their differences sometimes and one day when things between them seemed particularly tense, Diggle asked her about it when Roy and Oliver had headed out on patrol.

"It's nothing, really," Felicity shrugged. "It was all a big misunderstanding and the two of them are being awkward about it, when it really is more awkward for me."

"Oh? What happened?" Diggle wondered.

Felicity let out a small giggle. "I was chopping onions for lunch and Oliver was with me in the kitchen. I was trying to teach him how to make an omelet and the onions got to my eyes and they got all red and puffy and I started tearing up. Roy walked in on Oliver trying to take over and me telling him that 'it's okay' and he thought that Oliver had done something to upset me," she explained.

"Don't tell me the kid tried to defend your honor," Diggle said, an amused smile appearing on his face.

"Roy has gotten _really_ protective of me since he moved in," Felicity continued. "So he basically shoved Oliver out of the way to check on me himself and Oliver didn't react very well either..."

"Let me guess, he asked why Roy was acting like a concerned boyfriend?" Diggle quipped and Felicity nodded.

"Something similar to that, but with a lot more colorful words," Felicity grimaced. "It was really awkward afterward because they had an argument and in the end I told them both to shut up and stop acting as if I was their favorite toy or something that they were fighting over. Then I realized what I had said and started babbling and it got even more awkward and I went all 'mom' on them and forced them to apologize to each other."

"So that's why they're acting so strange," Diggle realized. "You 'mom-ed' them?"

"Yeah, now when I think about it, you should have been there to see their faces," Felicity giggled. "Oliver's pout is nothing compared to Roy's."

Diggle laughed at her comment and shook his head. "You are one of a kind, Felicity."

-§-

Felicity doesn't notice the changes at first.

Oliver's hand resting on her lower back as he leads her through the parking lot at night, his lingering shoulder touches and the way he sometimes wraps his arms around her in an embrace when he sees that she needs comfort. He does her laundry too and tells her that it's the least he can do and he takes out the trash, sometimes when it's not even his turn. She teaches him to cook and he in turn shows Roy some of the tricks he's learned from her and they have gotten incredibly comfortable with each other. She doesn't even stare at his bare chest anymore when he waltzes into the kitchen on Sunday mornings and his eyes don't look like they are about to fall out of their sockets when he sees her making pancakes wearing shorts and a hot-pink sports bra.

So when Roy walks into the kitchen and sits down by the table, waiting on the pancakes, Oliver is looking for a job in the newspaper while drinking his coffee (which he made for himself) while Felicity flips the pancakes over the stove and comments at the jobs he suggests.

"A Mrs. Evergreen is looking for a gardener," Oliver reads out loud. "I could do some gardening, right?"

"Yeah, sure," Felicity replied, flipping the pancake, "but Mrs. Evergreen is most likely also looking for some side-action when he husband is away on a business trip."

Oliver grimaced and crossed over the advertisement with the red sharpie he was holding. "A personal trainer?" he then asked and Felicity shook her head.

"No one would be able to keep up with your training," she reminded him. "They would probably die of exhaustion five minutes after you've started the workout."

Oliver crossed over the ad without another comment. "An accountant-"

"-needs to have a book keeping diploma," she finished for him, putting Roy's pancakes on a plate before putting the plate in front of the younger man. "Wait, let me see," she said, walking over to stand behind Oliver. She put her arm around his shoulder and leaned down to read from the newspaper over his head. "You could always walk dogs," she shrugged, pointing out an article. "I mean, you'd at least get some money until you manage to find something with a better income. And besides, your lawyers are still looking over the paperwork for getting Queen Consolidated back. You might have the company back in like a month."

"I appreciate your positivity, Felicity," Oliver grinned, "but who knows how long it might take."

"Yeah," Roy snorted, stuffing his mouth with pancake. "Especially with Oliver."

Felicity and Oliver both turned to look at him. "And what is that supposed to mean?" Oliver glared, raising an eyebrow.

"Well," Roy said, swallowing his bite. "I'm just saying that you were supposed to stay here for like a week or two and the three of us have been living together now for three months and a half. Not that I'm complaining, but you're not exactly someone who is bothered when something takes longer than you expect. Unless it's about hunting down a criminal," he added thoughtfully.

"Oliver is as welcome to stay here as you are, Roy," Felicity said. "Besides, sometimes apartment hunting takes longer than expected, especially in a city like this." She walked back to the stove and poured some batter into the frying pan.

"Oh, because he's been looking for an apartment _actively_," Roy rolled his eyes.

"I have," Oliver protested, but Felicity couldn't help the little smile that appeared on her face because he didn't sound very convincing. "It's just been going very slow. Besides, weren't you supposed to stay here until you got back on your feet with a job and all that? How's job hunting going for _you_?" Oliver smugly said.

Felicity turned toward Roy. "You know that you're welcome to stay here as long as you'd like to too, Roy," she said, shooting Oliver a look. "But maybe Oliver is right? Maybe you should at least try to get a job? I mean, it wouldn't be that bad to have two people with an income, right? Not that I mind paying the bills, especially since I'm the only one of us three that managed to get a job the moment things started to calm down again."

"I noticed that Big Belly Burger is hiring," Oliver suggested.

"Yeah? Why don't _you_ try to get a job there then?" Roy remarked.

"Because it's like Felicity said, maybe the lawyers will figure something out soon," Oliver shrugged.

"Either way, I think it would be really good for you to try and get out there, Roy," Felicity said, pointing at him with her spatula. "And _you_, should definitively try dog-walking. It's very calming and you look like you need something to take your mind off of the Arrow-business."

Oliver sent her a look and all of the sudden, Roy let out a loud groan, startling them both.

"God, do you two even hear yourselves?" he asked them, rubbing his temples. "You two are like the parents I never had! Lecturing me on what to do and what not to do while giving each other the heart eyes!"

"Aww," Felicity cooed, strangely flattered that Roy sort of saw her like a mother-figure. Then of course, she realized what he had said and her face dropped before heating up. "Wait, are you saying that we're acting like an old married couple?"

She turned to look at Oliver, who looked down, but not before she noticed a light blush on his cheeks too.

"You're more married than Diggle and Lyla!" Roy stated. "And they were married, then got divorced, then got married again!"

"We are _not!_" Felicity sputtered, appalled by his accusation.

"Oh, please, Felicity," Roy grinned. "Oliver may as well just buy you a ring and give it to you, since that's the only thing missing."

An awkward silence filled the kitchen and Felicity glared at Roy before glancing over at Oliver, who had finally looked up at her. There was something flashing in his eyes that she couldn't quite name.

_No, no, no!_ Every fiber of her body was shouting at her. She could literally see the way his own mind started building the walls that had begun to fall down since he moved in. Her heart hurt because she couldn't shake the feeling that he would once again detach himself after Roy's offhand comment.

She waited, not daring to say anything. What could she say? Instead, she looked at Oliver, her mind registering every movement he made, trying to decipher his thoughts. Her eyes fell to his right hand, which had let go of the newspaper that was now laying flat on the table. His fingers were rubbing together, the nervous tick she had become accustomed to since she met him. He was agitated and nervous, but he was trying desperately not to show it. Lifting his cup of coffee to his lips and taking a sip, he looked at her, but avoided her eyes.

"Are the pancakes done yet? I need to go soon and I wouldn't mind tasting one before I leave," he said, his voice calm, even though she knew it was a cover to hide his true emotions, whatever they were.

He wanted to change the subject and she let him, ignoring the exasperated sigh Roy let out as he dug into his breakfast again. She put a couple of pancakes on a plate and put them down on the table in front of Oliver.

"Here you go," she said, offering him a small smile. His lips twitched up in a half-smile, but he didn't look up at her.

That alone made her heart sink into her stomach.

-§-

"What do you mean you're moving out?" Felicity cautioned, not sure she had heard him correctly at first. "I don't understand what you're saying exactly," she said, letting out a nervous chuckle.

"I'm saying that I found an apartment and I'll be moving in there this Friday," he repeated.

"No, you see, I _heard_ you," Felicity stated, standing up from the couch, "I'm just not sure _why_ you're moving out."

"Well, this was supposed to be a temporary thing..." Oliver trailed off. "And it's been four months now."

Felicity couldn't believe this was happening.

A week had passed since Roy's little remark in the kitchen and just as she had feared, Oliver had started detaching himself from her. He had avoided being left alone with her at all costs and had been going out on late night patrols every night so that he would be too exhausted to stay up and watch movies with her and Roy.

Then, tonight, when they got home, she and Roy had just settled on the couch when he had walked up to them and dropped the bomb on them that he would be moving out by the end of the week.

Felicity observed him before turning to Roy, "Could you please give us a moment?"

Roy rose from the couch without hesitation, looking quite happy that he was being excused. Felicity could tell without a doubt that he knew voices were about to be raised.

"You don't have to feel any pressure to move out, Oliver," Felicity said as soon as she heard Roy close the door to his room. "You know that both you and Roy are welcome to stay however long you need."

"And I appreciate that, Felicity," Oliver acknowledged, "but I don't _need_ to stay anymore now that I've found an apartment."

Felicity's mouth went dry and her heart was racing. "I just don't understand," she told him. "A week ago you were in no hurry to move out and now all of the sudden you can't wait to get out of here fast enough? What happened?" she asked him.

"Nothing happened-" Oliver began, but Felicity shook her head at him furiously.

"Don't you _dare_ start lying to me, Oliver!" she glared. "You know I see right through you, so tell me the truth. Is this about what happened last Sunday?" By the way his body tensed briefly, she could tell that it was. "Please tell me that what Roy said doesn't have anything to do with this," she groaned.

He stared at her, but didn't say anything at first. The he looked away and shook his head before turning back to face her again. "What Roy said last week isn't the only reason," he told her. There was more to it, that much was clear by his choice of words. He was inquiring that there was more and Felicity was dying to know what he was thinking about.

"I don't mind you staying here, Oliver," she told him again, her tone letting him know just how serious she was.

"I know," Oliver smiled sadly, which only made her even more confused. "And I'm grateful for having you...as a friend. But the things that have been circling my head lately aren't making things any easier for me and I don't want to have those kinds of thoughts."

She shot him another glare, ignoring his hesitation to label her a 'friend'. "What kind of thoughts?" she demanded, but he shook his head at her.

"It doesn't matter," he told her, already walking toward the door. She walked after him quickly and grabbed his shoulder, forcing him to stop.

"Don't walk away from me!" she said. "We're _talking_, like the adults that we are and you do not get to just say that you're moving out and then walk out!"

Oliver pried her hand away from his shoulder and shook his head again. "I don't feel like having this conversation right now, Felicity," he said. "I need some air."

"Oliver!" she called after him, but before she knew it, she heard the front door slam shut. The sound echoed through the house and vibrated through her as she stared at the door that had been slammed in front of her. She was breathing heavily and her eyes stung. She felt as if she had just been slapped and she didn't even know the reason why this was bothering her so much.

If she was being realistic, she had known all along that Oliver moving in was going to be temporary. The same thing applied to Roy. That, however, didn't mean that she had accidentally let herself get used to having them both around. Roy had been staying with her for almost six months now and Oliver for four... She had gotten used to having them around and they had become the small- albeit dysfunctional at times- family that she had always wanted.

And now Oliver had decided to walk out on that.

A pair of warm arms wrapped around her and her knees went weak. She hadn't even heard Roy get out of his and Oliver's room, nor had she heard him walk up to her. A sob escaped her lips and she collapsed against the younger man, burying her head in his shoulder. She hadn't realized it until right then, why she was so upset about Oliver deciding to move out. The fact that she considered him and Roy family now and that she had grown closer to him so much surprised her at first, but now it all made sense.

"I'm sorry," Roy whispered as he rubbed her back. The fact that he wasn't tense told her just how much she and Roy had bonded too over the months that they had lived together. She shook her head, but couldn't say anything. Instead, she just buried herself in his embrace and cried.

-§-

Two and a half hours later, Oliver returned.

Felicity had forced Roy to go to bed, assuring him that she too would try to get some rest. To be honest, she had tried to go to bed, but leaving things unresolved like that with Oliver bothered her to no end, and no matter how much she tried to tell herself that they both needed to cool down before talking about anything, she had walked out of her room and headed downstairs again to wait for him.

As she sat on the couch, she thought through all the things she wanted to tell him whenever he got back, so she waited patiently, only staring at the turned off television while thoughts whirled around in her head.

When Oliver came back, he found her sitting there, on the couch with her feet popped underneath her. She saw the way his eyes flickered to her pajamas and then to her face. The way remorse flowed through his face, she could tell that he saw that she had been crying. His demeanor had changed and he looked as if he felt awful, which only made her feel hopeful that they would be able to talk things through.

"You're back," she said, her voice cracking despite her efforts to not show her emotions.

He flinched, but nodded as he remained standing by the living room door. "I needed to clear my head," he said. "I'm sorry I walked away."

"It's- I-" she shook her head, not knowing how to respond. "It's not okay," she settled. "But I understand. I had some time to think things through after you left."

"You've been crying," he whispered, taking a small step toward her, but still keeping a safe distance between them. "I'm sorry."

"Yeah," she nodded, a chuckle escaping her lips as she began tearing up again. She wiped her eyes and shook her head. "I'm sorry. It's not just you... I- I realized some things while you were out and I'd really like to tell you before we get into another argument," she told him, meeting his eyes. "You're not the only one who has been thinking things that you shouldn't have. I too have thought things that I _clearly_ shouldn't have," she began, taking another tentative step toward him.

He too took a step closer as well, but shook his head at her. "Felicity, I shouldn't have just walked out like that-" he started, but she interrupted him once more.

"Please, Oliver," she sighed. "I just need to say what I have to say and then you can say what you have to say." She waited for him to nod at her to continue, which he did, after a minute of complete silence. "I've had some time to think and, I can't even believe I'm saying this," she ran her fingers through her hair, "but I don't want you to leave, Oliver." Looking up at him, she could see that he was struggling to not say anything.

"Felicity..."

"No, listen," she insisted, this time taking another step toward him. "The thing is that this might have started out as a temporary thing, but living with you... Living with you and Roy both, has made me feel safer than I have felt in over two years. I've started to depend on you. _Both_ of you, and honestly, I can't imagine living in this house without you or him." Oliver inhaled through his nose and finally met her gaze. She tried to offer him a smile, but she knew that there were tears in her eyes and that it would come across as a sad one. "This is _our_ home, Oliver," she told him. "And I love our home. I love us living in our home together," she said, motioning around the room. "I love Roy like the kid-brother that I never had and... And I love you," she exhaled, feeling as if a weight lifted off of her shoulders. "You don't have to say anything and I understand if I've completely freaked you out..." she trailed off, suddenly realizing just what she had said to him. She stared at him with wide eyes, but his face didn't betray any emotions. She could tell that his mind was going a thousand miles a minute and she didn't know what to do. She had just confessed that she loved him and he was just _standing there_.

"Oh, God, please tell me I haven't completely freaked you out!" she exclaimed before she could stop herself. "The point is, I love having you here and I don't want you to move out... So I'm being selfish and I'm asking you to stay, but I won't hold it against you if you leave, because I can see that I've completely freaked you out-"

The speed at which he moved forward shocked her, but not as much as feeling his lips pressed against her own. It took her about two seconds to realize that Oliver was kissing her and another two for her to remember how to move so that she could kiss him back.

His hands were on her cheeks, brushing away the invisible tears that had been there earlier, as his lips moved against hers, first intensely and passionately before slowing down, as if he was trying to savor ever second of it. One of his hands moved down to her neck, before moving back to cradle the back of her head, his fingers twisting into her soft hair.

Her own hands were on his hips before they slowly moved upward, across his chest, resting there shortly as his other arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her more tightly to him. Her fingers spread widely, coming to rest on his shoulders before she wrapped her arms around his neck to pull him impossibly closer to her.

Her lips were a little chapped from biting them furiously after his departure, while his were still cold from being outside for so long, but it didn't bother them at all as they continued to put everything they had into the kiss that made their minds cloud and caused the world to fade.

Then, he pulled away, bending his head so he could rest his forehead against hers. She had to stand on her toes still, so she could keep her arms wrapped around his neck and it hit her all of the sudden, just how big their height difference was. She opened her eyes and met his cerulean ones. They were both panting, breathing each other in as they just watched and waited each other out.

He was the first one to speak. "You haven't completely freaked me out," he told her, still a little breathless. "I'm sorry for upsetting you...and for trying once again to push you away. I'm tired of pushing you away and keeping you at arms length," he confessed, his eyes searching hers briefly. "And I want to stay, if you'll still have me...?"

"For how long?" she asked, despite herself. Happiness was bubbling inside of her, but she needed to make sure that he was serious this time. "Because I've been thinking about officially having your name on the ownership papers... Yours and Roy's of course-"

He kissed her softly again, but pulled away before she had a chance to properly respond. "For as long as you'll have me," he told her in a whisper, the pad of his thumb brushing against her lower lip.

She smiled and felt a small blush creeping up her cheeks. "Is 'forever' too cliché to ask for?" she asked him.

He beamed back at her and her heart felt like it was about to explode, because seeing Oliver genuinely smile was rare and it was something that she doubted she would ever get tired of seeing.

"Forever sounds perfectly fine in my ears," he chuckled, brushing the back of his hand across her cheek.

"But you have to stop being so over-protective," she told him.

"I'm not making any promises," he retorted.

"And you don't get to decide tomorrow that you regret letting me in," she continued. It might have been said playfully, but she knew he understood that she was serious too.

"I won't," he replied. "_That_, I _can_ promise you. I love you," he confessed.

Grinning, Felicity grabbed his shirt and closed the distance between them once more.

-§-

The next morning Roy made his way upstairs to Felicity's room, carrying a tray with breakfast with him after having decided to try to cheer her up.

What he hadn't expected to see when he opened the door though, was Felicity and Oliver engaged in a hot make-out session on her bed, only in their underwear.

Or at least he prayed that they were wearing underwear, because they were covered by her comforter and he couldn't see anything (thankfully).

"Oh God!" Roy exclaimed, quickly putting the tray down on Felicity's make-up table before covering his eyes with his hands. "At least put a sock on the door or something next time!"

Oliver groaned and his head fell to Felicity's shoulder while Felicity rose up on her elbows, blushing furiously while holding the blanket over her chest.

"Roy!" she yelped, blushing furiously.

"I'm happy the two of you worked things out, but at least warn a guy so he doesn't walk in on you making future Arrow-babies!" Roy said, his hands still over his eyes. "And you could have locked the door!" he pointed out.

"_Roy_," Oliver practically growled, turning to shoot the younger man a glare over his shoulder.

"Oh, right," Roy said, still not looking at them. "I'll leave you guys to it then." He turned his back to them and started to walk out of the room before stopping. "Wait, does this mean that I get to have my room all to myself again?"

"Roy, get out of the room before I punch you," Oliver snapped, bending down to kiss Felicity's shoulder again.

"Right, right. Sorry," Roy quickly said before stepping out, closing the door behind him. The sound of Felicity's giggles brought a smile to his face, but he shuddered and hurried to his own room when her laughs turned into moans. He picked up his phone and texted Diggle the news, turning up the volume on the stereo Felicity had bought him for his birthday. He couldn't help but feel happy for his friends, but he would most likely ask Oliver if he would be keeping the apartment, so Roy could use it as an escape whenever the new couple became a little too much for him to handle.

* * *

**Note: Poor Roy, being traumatized... ^^ I had a lot of fun writing this, so I really hope you've enjoyed it! For those of you who are reading "Alternate", I am working on the fourth chapter, but I haven't had a lot of time to write these last few days, but I will try to get it finished by the end of the week (hopefully)! Thank you for reading and don't forget to leave a comment! =)**


	4. What We Give Each Other

**_Note: Hey guys! I started writing this little one-shot before my vacation and just finished it, so I decided to post it! It's a small continuation of "Domesticity and House Guests" I guess, so it's basically about what happened after Oliver and Felicity got together in that one! There's some Thea and Roy in here too and I really hope you enjoy it! =)_**

* * *

"**What We Give Each Other"**

**Word count: 6,513**

"_Whe__n __you honestly think about what you and your partner add to each others lives, you will often find that instead of giving or taking things from each other- advice, answers, material gifts, etc. You two have chosen rather to share in each others joy and pain, and experience life together through good times and bad. No matter what, you two are there for one another, growing and learning as one." - _**Suman Rai**

* * *

Felicity and Oliver loved each other.

There was no doubt about it, that's for sure. Roy had gotten used to seeing them all lovey-dovey after they got together and yes, Oliver had indeed moved into Felicity's smaller bedroom, which Roy was one hundred percent sure that he didn't mind. After all, it gave them the opportunity to be all cozy and couple-y together without having Roy walk in on them (which had happened too many times, to be honest).

So yeah, they were totally in love and only had eyes for each other... Which was why Roy wasn't following what their current argument was about.

The couple had gone out to dinner and returned to the lair at each others throats about something.

"It was _nothing_, Oliver!" Felicity said angrily, walking toward her computer, high-heels in her left hand as she turned it on with the other.

"How can you say that it's 'nothing', when it clearly was?" Oliver followed her insistently. "That guy was flirting with you!"

"So?"

Roy almost laughed at the look that covered Oliver's face.

"'_So?'_" Oliver deadpanned. "That's all you have to say?"

Felicity whirled around and faced him. "Well, it's not as if girl's don't fawn over you everywhere we go, right? Should I be feeling guilty that an _ex-boyfriend_ of mine tries to flirt with me? It's not like I flirted back, unlike _someone,_" she glared.

Okay. Now Roy understood.

Just like every other couple, they were going through their jealousy-phase. And to be honest, it was probably the funniest thing Roy had ever seen. He nudged Diggle, who had been cleaning his gun when the couple had walked in, and motioned at them with his head. Diggle looked up, as if not noticing them until now and shook his head. Roy wondered just how used to their petty little fights Diggle had gotten. To be frank, their arguments just proved how much they really cared about each other.

"That means nothing, Felicity," Oliver argued. "I don't even know those girls!"

Felicity sighed and tilted her head, observing him and quietly calling him out on his bullshit. "You're such a hypocrite sometimes, Oliver," she informed him. "You know that I love you and that Matt and I happened, like, _ages_ ago. I was the one who broke up with him, which sort of explains his behavior tonight."

Oliver's features softened a little. "I know that you love me, and you know that I love you too," he said, making Roy wonder if the two of them were even aware of the fact that they had an audience. Normally, Oliver didn't express his feelings in words when they were in public, but whatever happened tonight must have messed up his head enough with jealousy so that he didn't care how much affection he showed his girlfriend. "And I'm sorry for being a hypocrite... I just-" he exhaled sharply, "-_didn't enjoy_ standing there while he flirted shamelessly with you..."

Felicity smiled a little. "And I guess I'm sorry for saying that you flirt back when girls approach you... I know you're just trying to politely tell them that you're not interested and that your charming face makes it look like flirting back."

Roy rolled his eyes and turned away, shooting Diggle a look. The two of them stood up and walked out of the Foundry. When Roy glanced back, he saw Oliver and Felicity standing a hairsbreadth away from each other, grinning like fools, leaning in.

"Urgh," Roy groaned, shutting his eyes tightly before following Diggle outside. "I don't even know how those two managed to stay away from each other for so long."

"Tell me about it," Diggle shook his head. "They're like lovesick puppies whenever one of them has to leave town for a few days and they've only been together officially for like three months."

Roy nodded in agreement, "But hey, at least they are happy."

A smile made it's way onto Diggle's face. "That, they are."

-Olicity-

It took some adjustment though, because Oliver and Felicity weren't just together, they were also partners in crime (or justice, depending on how you viewed it). During the beginning of their relationship, they had quite a few arguments about Felicity's field work. Oliver didn't want her to put herself in danger, but she in some cases insisted that she needed to be closer to the target to be able to intercept his or her computers better. As mentioned, it took them a while, but eventually, they came to a compromise, usually involving Roy and Diggle voting.

The fact that Oliver sulked each time that Diggle and Roy both took Felicity's side, only made the 'compromise' more amusing for Roy and Diggle, but Felicity enjoyed putting a smile back on Oliver's face once the mission was over.

Then of course, there were the times that Oliver and Felicity ganged up on Roy. The couple enjoyed annoying him by acting like parents so much that they even went with him to the local community college to help him register for some classes.

"You're a young man with a bright future ahead of yourself," Felicity had insisted. "There's no need for you to just sit around and do nothing during the day, especially now that both Oliver and I are working at Queen Consolidated again."

"Felicity, you do know that you're like two-three years older than me, right?" Roy had retorted.

"Listen to Felicity, Roy," Oliver had put in. "We're just doing this because it's what's best for you."

"You guys are _not_ my parents!" Roy had argued, making Oliver and Felicity laugh.

"No, we're not," Felicity had agreed. "But we are living together, and I'm telling you that you're not allowed to slack around just because Oliver and I are providing for our family now. I suggest we take a vote," she had grinned, making Roy roll his eyes.

"_Fine_," Roy finally caved. "I'll attend some classes. Not because I think it'll help me in my vigilantism, but because I just know that the two of you will out-vote me either way."

Oliver grinned at him as he wrapped his arms around Felicity's waist.

"What gives you that idea?" he chuckled, leaning down to lightly peck Felicity on the lips. She only smiled widely before stepping up to Roy, wrapping him in a tight hug.

"I'm _so_ proud of you," she told him, kissing his cheek lightly.

Roy couldn't help the smile that spread on his lips.

-Olicity-

One year later, shit hit the fan when they found Thea.

Actually, Felicity was the one who found Thea and then kept it to herself for a few days while she looked her up and met with her in secret.

They had been attacked by Malcolm Merlin (who was apparently _alive_) and his young, masked protege when the puzzle pieces had clicked together in Felicity's brain. As soon as they had made their way back to the lair, shaken with the revelation that Merlin was still breathing and wrecking havoc, she had taken to her computers, once again looking for Thea's face while also cross-referencing it with Malcolm's. The results gave her all the proof that she needed.

Thea had been with Malcolm for well over a year, since Slade's attack on the city and he had _clearly _taught her a lot of things, _including_ archery.

Felicity didn't know how to tell Oliver this and because she hated keeping things from him, she decided to take action immediately. She found the small motel, just out of town that Merlin was staying at and made the assumption that Thea too would be there. Going against everything that Oliver had told her about staying safe, she drove there and showed the people in the reception a picture of Thea.

The nice and unknowing staff directed her to a room and Felicity was thrilled to find out that Thea was staying in a room all by herself. When she knocked on the door though, panic began to set in, because she had absolutely _no clue_ to what she was going to tell the younger Queen sibling.

The door opened and there stood a more mature looking version of Thea Queen, with and expressionless face, but very sad eyes. The brunette gave Felicity a once-over before leaning against the door-frame.

"Can I help you with something?" she asked and Felicity felt her heart beat faster.

She had seen Thea- who had been been masked at the moment- in action, and despite learning some self-defense moves from Oliver and Diggle, she was nowhere near ready to take her on if things turned sour.

"I..." Felicity began, but trailed off when she felt her phone vibrate in her purse. She took out her phone and was met by Oliver's face before looking up at Thea, who had her own eyes on Felicity's phone.

"I knew I recognized you from somewhere," Thea mumbled. "You're my brother's blonde secretary."

"A lot of things have changed since you went away, Thea," Felicity said softly. "But yes, I'm Felicity."

Thea only stared at her, "What are you doing here?"

"I came to talk to you," Felicity said. "In private, if that's okay? I promise I came here alone and your brother doesn't know anything about you being here."

Thea didn't seem very convinced, but she assessed Felicity before stepping aside, allowing her to enter the room.

Felicity spent an hour in Thea's room, trying to convince Thea that she should come back with her and escape Malcolm's clutches. Thea appreciated her efforts, but stayed at the motel.

When Felicity went home again, she told Oliver about what she'd done and he had been absolutely furious at her before realizing that she had managed to find Thea. The two of them argued for two days straight, because Felicity absolutely _refused_ to give up Thea's location.

On the third day, Oliver understood why though, because when Thea showed up on Felicity's doorstep with a bag of clothes in her hand, he had never been more thankful for his girlfriend. Somehow, Felicity had known that what she'd told Thea would get the younger girl's attention. She had given Thea her address, in case she change her mind when she saw the truth about how her brother had done everything to protect her.

"I'm sorry, Ollie," Thea said, as she stepped inside the house and straight into Oliver's arms. Oliver's own breath caught in his throat and tears filled his eyes as he held his baby sister tightly against him, afraid she might once again slip out of his arms. He caught Felicity's eyes over Thea's shoulder and tried to give her the most appreciative and loving look he could muster.

Next thing they knew, Thea was moving into Felicity's house, working on her relationship with Roy and trying to find redemption by joining Team Arrow as the new sidekick Speedy.

"It's just temporary," Thea said a month later while the four of them were sitting around the table, eating a quiet, late dinner.

Felicity glanced in Oliver's direction before turning to Roy, who had a small smile on his lips.

"Yeah," Felicity grinned, taking a small sip from her glass of red wine. "We have never really understood the meaning of that word."

-Olicity-

"Oh, we need toilet paper!" Felicity read from the list in her hands as Thea grabbed a pack and put it in the shopping cart before pushing it again. "And you and I need to buy some conditioner, because Oliver and Roy clearly don't understand that they are _men_ that don't need softer hair."

Thea smiled at her, "How did you and my brother get together?"

The question caught Felicity off guard and she halted mid-rant so that she could look at Thea. She had been expecting it to come up eventually, but not after two months of living together, in the middle of grocery shopping.

"I, uhm..." Felicity trailed off while Thea shrugged.

"I mean, I remember that the two of you weren't together when I left, but that people around Queen Consolidated had a rumor going around about you two," Thea said. "I just want to know how you _actually _got together, because you seem far too good together for it to have been an office romance."

"Well," Felicity began, "you do know that we're partners as well. I worked by Oliver's side long before I became his E.A and we were partners before everything else."

"So there were no feeling there before?" Thea asked, putting the milk in the cart while Felicity ticked it off on the list.

"Of course there were feelings," Felicity truthfully answered. "I mean, there was attraction since the day he walked into my office with a broken computer-"

"Roy told me that it had been completely bulled-ridden," Thea interrupted.

"Yeah," Felicity smiled at the memory, "it was. Either way, after I joined the team, we quickly became friends and well, partners too. I knew that I loved him, as a friend, after the Undertaking but I didn't know that I was in love with him until a little before the battle against Slade."

"Though you didn't say anything, right?" Thea asked and Felicity shook her head.

"I knew he cared about me too, but there was absolutely no way of knowing how much. Remember when I told you about how we defeated Slade?" Felicity asked, putting the Granny Smith apples in the cart.

"The whole fake-not-so-fake 'I love you'? Yeah, I remember," Thea smiled lightly.

"Well, it was sort of the start to our relationship. When we moved in together, things just sort of escalated and according to Roy, we've been together for longer than the official night we got together," Felicity explained. "I love him," Felicity smiled to herself.

"And he loves you," Thea stated, smiling back at her. "A lot, I may add."

"I honestly can't imagine my life without him," Felicity admitted. "Sometimes I wonder how I got so lucky to have him."

Thea put a hand on her shoulder and grinned. "Believe me when I tell you this, Felicity," she said. "Oliver is the lucky one, because you're truly amazing. I know it's been difficult having me around at the house too, especially with me and Roy going through our own issues, but I can never tell you how happy I am that you were the one who found me and decided that I was worth giving a second chance."

"Everyone deserves a second chance, Thea," Felicity told her. "I'm just happy that you found your way home."

Tears filled Thea's eyes and the young girl cleared her throat. "You're like the sister I never had," she said, "and I can't even begin to tell you how thankful I am."

"You won't ever have to," Felicity told her, hugging her tightly in the middle of the store. They might have gotten some weird looks, but neither of them cared. "As long as you keep making your own bed," she playfully added, earning a laugh.

When they returned home, Oliver and Roy were once again arguing over who left the downstairs bathroom in a mess. Felicity met Thea's eyes, and they both silently agreed that it was better not to tell them that they had been looking for conditioner and hadn't bothered to clean up after themselves after writing it down on the shopping list.

-Olicity-

Roy was just standing there..._staring _at her.

Felicity fiddled with the hem of her shirt, biting her lip nervously. "Are you okay?" she wondered, trying to take a calming breath of her own, but she was way too stressed to actually manage to calm down.

"Did you do it yet?" Roy asked, instead of answering her question. "Is that why you told Oliver to take Thea out for dinner?"

"Roy, please," Felicity sighed, sitting down on the couch, burying her face in her hands. "I didn't know what to say to him and I just needed him out of here before I said _something_."

"Felicity," Roy said, walking over to her, sitting down on the couch next to her. "You can't keep something like this from him. He'll find out eventually."

"I know, I know," Felicity said, tearing up. "And I know that he's already suspecting that something is off with me, because Diggle told me he asked him if everything was okay with me."

"To be honest, you aren't exactly good at hiding your emotions," Roy chuckled, taking her hand in his. "But why tell me?"

"Because you're like my brother," Felicity told him. "And you're my friend and you're Oliver's friend too and I couldn't tell anyone else."

"Thea's a girl," Roy stated. "Maybe she would have been a better option?"

"You're my _brother_," Felicity repeated, this time more confident. "And Thea is Oliver's sister, so it would be a little awkward for me, even though we're all friends."

Roy just nodded, squeezing her hand lightly. "So, did you take it yet?" he asked her again.

"It's in the bathroom," she replied. "It's been there for half an hour, but I haven't dared going in there to look at it yet. I couldn't do it alone."

"Let's do it together then," he told her, standing up from the couch and pulling her along with him. "I'll be by your side and whatever the result is, I'll stay there."

"You're too good to me," Felicity told him with a teary smile.

"Not good enough, after everything you've done for me," Roy smiled back at her.

They walked to the bathroom and Felicity walked inside first, heading straight for the sink. She closed her eyes as she grabbed the test and handed it to Roy.

"I can't look at it," she told him. "You have to tell me, okay?"

Roy took it from her without hesitation, before flipping it over. Felicity bit her lip as she eyed his face. Damn it, he had gotten good at keeping a neutral face.

He looked up at her and their eyes locked for what felt like an eternity.

"Well?" she pressed.

"It looks like I'm becoming an uncle," Roy told her, a smile spreading across his lips.

"Oh my God," Felicity said, taking the pregnancy test from his hands to look at it herself.

_Pregnant_.

"Oh my _God_," she repeated, a little louder this time. "Oh God, oh God!" She waved her hands around in a panicked motion. "What am I going to do? What if Oliver gets angry? What if he doesn't want the baby?"

The questions kept making their way out of her mouth and Roy's face dropped as he took a step toward her, stopping her rant by putting his hands on her shoulders. "Felicity, calm down," he told her. "You'll see that Oliver will be thrilled to be a father... Unless of course he isn't the father- I'm just _kidding!_" he defended quickly when Felicity shot him a glare. "What I'm trying to say is that Oliver loves you. You'll see that he'll be happy when you tell him."

"But we never talked about kids," Felicity said. "He's still the Arrow and we've just been together for like a year and some months. What if he thinks it's too soon?" she asked, putting her hand on her still flat belly.

"If he makes some stupid, rash comment, I'll beat the crap out of him," Roy told her while grinning. "So can we please just be happy about this?"

"Will you be there when I tell Oliver?" Felicity questioned and Roy gave her a look that said it all. "Okay, stupid question. Let's hug."

They embraced and Felicity looked at the test again as they walked back to the living room. "A baby," she said absentmindedly. "How am I supposed to tell Oliver that I'm pregnant?"

The squeal that followed her statement made both her and Roy jump and turn around. Roy was in front of her in a millisecond, already in full Arsenal-defense-mode, but he relaxed once he realized that there was no threat in the room.

Instead, Thea was jumping up and down excitedly by the door, clapping her hands together.

"I'm going to be an aunt?" she laughed happily, running to Felicity, wrapping her arms around the blonde who couldn't tear her eyes off of her boyfriend who stood frozen in the doorway. "I'm so happy for you!" Thea continued, not realizing that the tension in the room expanded when Oliver's eyes met Felicity's.

"Uhm, Thea," Roy said carefully. "Maybe we should give Oliver and Felicity a moment alone?" he suggested, managing to pull Thea away from Felicity.

Thea eyed her brother, quickly realizing why they needed to talk and nodded. "Yeah, of course," she said, giving Felicity one last hand squeeze before stepping out of the living room with Roy.

"You're pregnant?" Oliver asked, once he heard the door to Roy and Thea's room close.

"Yeah," Felicity confirmed. "We're pregnant. I mean, technically, I am, but since you're the father, _we_ are. You're going to be a dad. And I'm going to be a mom, _clearly_." She let out a shaky laugh. "If that's what you want of course! I mean, we haven't even talked about this and I know it was unexpected and all, so I completely understand if you don't want to have a baby, but I really can't imagine getting an-"

"Felicity," Oliver chuckled, taking a step toward her. She shut her mouth as he came to stand in front of her. He looked down at her and leaned in, claiming her lips in a soft kiss before his hand came to rest on her abdomen.

When they pulled apart, she blinked up at him. "Does this mean...?"

"Yeah," he breathed out. "I'm _happy_," he told her, a smile on his lips, his eyes lighting up with excitement. "I know that it's unexpected and I know that we haven't talked about it. I'm scared as hell because I know that we have a thousand things on our plates already, but I _am_ happy."

"So you want to be a dad?" she asked and he nodded.

"And you want to be a mom?" he countered and she gave him a nod and a small laugh. "So, we're becoming parents then," he stated, touching her stomach again.

She put her hand over his and smiled up at him, "I guess we are."

-Olicity-

"Not like that, Oliver!" Felicity's voice rang out from the bathroom. "I swear to God if you don't do this properly, I'll transfer all your assets to my own personal account!"

Roy and Thea paused in the hallway and looked at each other with raised eyebrows.

"You asked me for help, Felicity! Stop complaining, I'm doing my best!" Oliver answered loudly.

"Well, you're not doing a very good job at helping, are you?" Felicity scoffed. "Besides, it's your fault that I even had to ask you for help."

"It takes two to get pregnant, Felicity," Oliver protested, amusement clear in his tone.

"Don't you dare laugh at me!" Felicity yelled and her statement was quickly followed by Oliver's laughter.

"I just don't remember you complaining at the time," Oliver smugly replied.

Thea looked over at Roy who scrunched up his nose, clearly disgusted by whatever they were overhearing. She gave him a mischievous look and he shook his head, telling her silently not to get involved.

Thea decided to ignore him and knocked on the door instead, "Hey are you guys okay in there?"

There was a pause and then some shuffling could be heard inside the bathroom. Thea and Roy waited patiently until the door opened and Felicity peeked out, dressed in a pink bathrobe, her huge 'I'm-eight-months-pregnant'-stomach protruding.

"Everything is fine," she answered, a smile on her face. Next, Oliver's face came into view as he shook his head.

"What are you two even doing in there?" Thea chuckled.

"Please don't tell us, or else I'll never be able to use that bathroom again," Roy complained, covering his ears.

"Oh please," Felicity rolled her eyes at him. "We're not doing _anything_. Trust me, we have far more exciting places to have-"

"Okay, okay!" Thea interrupted. "I regret asking!"

Oliver grinned behind Felicity and shook his head, "We weren't doing anything. Felicity just couldn't bend properly-"

"I thought I told you that I didn't want to know!" Roy loudly protested again.

Oliver gave him a look, his lips pressed firmly together to try to contain his amusement.

"As I was _saying_," he continued, despite Roy's objections. "She can't bend properly because of the baby and she wanted to wear a skirt today but needed to shave her legs, so she asked me for help."

Thea and Roy looked at them, blinking.

"You were shaving her legs?" Thea asked, laughter bubbling up inside of her.

Oliver shrugged, not even looking embarrassed.

"Yeah, just wait until _you're_ the one pregnant, and then you'll appreciate having a wonderful boyfriend that helps you shave your legs," Felicity said, shooting a glare at Roy, who immediately blushed, glancing sideways at Thea.

"Oh, so now I'm a wonderful boyfriend?" Oliver asked. "I thought I was doing a horrible job and that it was my fault that you couldn't reach all the way down."

Felicity slapped him playfully. "That's just when we're in private," she told him. "When people start making fun of you, I'll always stand up for you and honestly, I can't tell if you did a good job or not, since I can't see my toes." She wiggled said toes to make a point.

Roy and Thea couldn't contain themselves as they burst out laughing. Oliver shot them yet another glare before embracing Felicity, who didn't seem bothered anymore.

Her hormones were clearly still getting the better of her, but he loved her even more for acting like it wasn't a big deal.

-Olicity-

Roughly a month after the shaving incident, Caroline Olivia Queen is born.

It's a late night and Felicity was in the Foundry, monitoring a mission when her water broke. Oliver panicked, because she wasn't supposed to be there, but she had insisted, and he wasn't close enough to get to her in time.

Diggle, however, was.

Their friend managed to get to her _and_ take her to the hospital, just in time for her to give birth to the baby girl. Oliver and Felicity had decided on the first name together, but the middle name was Felicity's idea because Diggle hadn't been able to get a hold of Oliver and she didn't even know if he was alive. The thought of having Oliver die the night of their daughter's birth had terrified her to no end, so when he finally walked through the door, worry written all over his face, she had been so happy that she had started crying all over again. When she told Oliver about Caroline's middle-name, he had actually shed a tear before kissing her hard on the mouth.

The nurses came back into the room with a newly washed Caroline and helped Oliver take her into his hands. Diggle, Roy, Thea and Felicity watched him stare down at the blue-eyed baby that was wrapped in a fluffy pink blanket with adoration and wonder.

"Hello, Caroline," he whispered, the baby so small in his big arms. He sat down on the edge of Felicity's bed and Felicity moved so that she too could rest her hand on Caroline's stomach.

"She's so beautiful," Felicity quietly said as their baby opened and closed her eyes before falling asleep as her father gently rocked her.

"She got that from her mother," Oliver told her, kissing Felicity again.

"Her father is quite good looking too, you know," Felicity joked.

"Then I suppose I'll be fighting off a lot of suitors," Oliver smiled softly.

"Shh... It's too early for that," Felicity giggled.

"Yeah, I don't think so," Thea grinned at them before turning to give Roy a small kiss on the cheek. "If she's anything like her aunt, you guys don't stand a chance."

-Olicity-

Baby Caroline became Thea's real salvation.

Okay, so she had started the road to redemption long before Caroline was born, but when the baby girl was finally born, Thea officially decided that she wanted to make the city a safer place for her niece.

To be honest, the entire Team Arrow somehow unanimously decided that they needed to up their game. Felicity stayed home with Caroline the first month and Oliver kept her company for as long as he could until he had to go out for patrolling. Eventually, Roy told him that he and Thea could patrol the streets together while Diggle monitored them, so Oliver got more time at home with Felicity and the baby.

Diggle loved being an uncle, but something he loved even more was watching Felicity and Oliver interact with Caroline. When Felicity set up a crib in the Foundry, she started coming out more often to help with missions and Oliver's face when he saw Caroline fast asleep was always heart warming. No matter how rough a night could have been, the baby seemed to always be able to put a smile on her father's face, even in her sleep.

The funniest thing that Diggle had witnessed however, was when Felicity had insisted that Oliver should learn how to change a diaper, because she might not always be available for the task (_"And we live in the 21__st__ century, Oliver!"_).

"Thea, please get that camera out of my face," Oliver had said as his face scrunched up. Diggle and Roy stood a little further away, snickering like fools while Felicity tried to show Oliver how to do it properly.

"Oh no," Thea had giggled. "This is going up on _youtube_! 'Daddy Oliver Queen Changing Diaper' will be a great name for the video!"

"You're not funny, Thea!" Oliver protested loudly, turning his head to the side as he opened the diaper and the smell hit him. "Oh, God! Felicity, what do you feed your kid?" he asked, a small gasp escaping his lips.

"Lots and lots of love," Felicity laughed. "And she's your kid too, Oliver!"

"I swear, it's not biologically possible for a tiny human to poop this much," Oliver muttered as he reached for the baby wipes as Caroline looked up at him with her big blue eyes. The cute look she gave him almost made him forget about the smell. _Almost._

"Oh come on, Oliver," Felicity said. "It can't be that bad, can it? Isn't that what you said to me?"

Oliver groaned as he wiped Caroline's little butt and shook his head. "I will never say such a thing to you ever again if you just please take over," he said. "I feel like I'm going to be sick!"

Felicity only grinned at him and then proceeded to help the last bit.

Thea recorded it all, telling them that they would be looking back at it one day with a smile on their faces and Diggle expressed just how proud he was of Oliver for taking the reigns and becoming a _real_ man.

Roy couldn't stop laughing...until Felicity told him that it was his turn.

-Olicity-

Two years later, Oliver insisted that he and Felicity needed a night out by themselves. They were still going strong, their partnership more powerful than ever and their relationship even more so. So, Diggle had agreed to patrol with Roy for the night and Thea would be watching Caroline alone until Roy joined up with her at home.

Felicity took her time getting ready and Oliver expressed just how much he loved watching her get ready by stealing a kiss every chance he got. There was just something about her sitting in their bedroom, putting her make-up on that made him ask himself how he had gotten so lucky to have her.

"We won't be away too long," Felicity told Thea, who was holding onto Caroline. "We both have our phones, so don't hesitate to call."

"Felicity, seriously!" Thea laughed. "Stop acting as if this is the first time I'm watching Caroline for you. I know how to handle her."

"Well, this is the first time that it feels like I'm leaving her behind, so just give me a minute or two to freak out," Felicity retorted.

"We're just going to a restaurant, Felicity," Oliver smiled at her. "Thea will be fine and so will Caroline. Isn't that right, baby girl?" he asked the toddler, lightly touching her cheek with his thumb.

The baby gurgled and let out a giggle at her father's actions.

"See?" Thea asked. "We'll be absolutely fine!"

And so they were...for two hours straight.

Baby Caroline was clearly missing her parents too much and no matter how Thea (and later Roy) tried to distract her, the baby just wouldn't stop crying. They had tried feeding her, changing her diaper, rocking her back and forth, playing with her, singing to her, but nothing would stop the toddler's crying.

"I'm calling Felicity," Thea finally sighed, picking up her phone.

"No!" Roy protested. "Call Oliver! Felicity will freak out immediately when she hears the crying and she won't rest until she sees Care, and then she'll go all 'momma-bear' on our asses!"

Thea eyed him briefly, before nodding, "You're right."

She dialed Oliver's number and they were lucky, because Felicity had gone to the bathroom.

"Let me talk to her," Oliver told Thea, who immediately turned the phone on speaker. "Caroline? Care?" Oliver cooed softly on the other line and Caroline's cries faded instantly as she listened. "Daddy's here, Care. Everything is okay. Mommy and I will be home soon, do you hear me?"

Caroline let out a small sound and then started crying again.

"Thea," Oliver sighed in defeat. "Bring her to the restaurant, okay? I'll tell the manager to set up a table for you and Roy and you can just stay with her there until she falls asleep."

In the end, Felicity and Oliver did get to enjoy their meal and Caroline did calm down and stop crying, the minute she saw her parents. The happy couple watched as Roy and Thea ran after the toddler, who had distracted herself by training to become the next champion in track and field running in the restaurant.

"Just keep eating," Thea insisted when she passed their table.

"Ignore us, okay? We're not even here!" Roy agreed as he followed her, Caroline's laughter ringing through the restaurant as other guests watched the scene in mixed fascination and confusion.

Oliver grinned at Felicity before reaching over to take her hand in his. "Maybe next time we should ask Diggle to watch her?" he suggested.

"Yeah, what girl wouldn't get calm when being held in those massive arms?" Felicity laughed, sipping on her drink calmly as she watched her daughter run around, the other two secret vigilantes on her heels.

-Olicity-

Even after being together with Felicity officially for four years, Oliver still sometimes wondered how he could have been so lucky.

His life had been quite easy in the beginning, because he had gotten everything he had pointed at, but then came the boat accident and Lian Yu and everything that was The Arrow and those responsibilities. Becoming a father three years after his return hadn't been planned, but he couldn't imagine his life without either Caroline, or the love of his life, Felicity.

He had been planning it for weeks, but when he finally asked her, it slipped out in the most unexpected time.

They were laying in their bed, the three-year old Caroline already fast asleep between them. He had just looked over at her and found her watching him with such adoration, that his heart had actually clenched painfully in his chest. He knew he was a broken man and sometimes, he still had nightmares from the island. So, to see Felicity looking at him as if he held all the answers in the world for her made him feel..._whole._

Without thinking, he reached back toward his nightstand table and opened the drawer, pulling out the small velvet box. He kept his eyes firmly planted on Felicity's face as he held the box out for her. Her eyes flickered from his, down to the box in his hands and then back up to his, a smile already spreading across her lips.

"Will you marry me, Felicity?" he whispered, his lips tugging up in a smile of their own.

"Why now?" Felicity wondered, whispering as well as she rested her hand on Caroline's belly.

They had discussed marriage once, but never actually come to a conclusion on whether or not they wanted to get married. Felicity came from a failed marriage herself and Oliver had never actually believed that his mother and father had been all that happy together, so they had both been reluctant to agree to anything. Besides, they had Caroline, right? And they were a family and they were happy. Why would they need a piece of paper confirming that they belonged to each other?

"Roy mentioned a few weeks back that we were already practically married," Oliver said. "And even though neither of us needs it, I want it to be official on paper, that I am yours and you are mine."

Felicity smiled, "You make me so happy, Oliver. Not because of this, but with everything." She took a small breath before continuing. "You showed me what it means to make a difference in this world. You gave me a home, a family and purpose. You're the father of my child and I love you more than anything in the world. You're my hero," she smiled, a tear slipping down her cheek.

"You're the mother of my child," Oliver began. "You were the one who pulled me back whenever darkness threatened to take me again. You're always on my mind when I make a decision and you're my voice of reason. You're the love of my life, Felicity Smoak, and I would like for you to be my wife, because honestly? _You _are _my _hero."

A grin spread across Felicity's face as she lifted her left hand, the one that had rested on Caroline's stomach. "Put a ring on it, Oliver," she told him and he had to keep himself from laughing out loud, because he didn't want to wake Caroline. Gently, he slid the ring home and then watched as the diamond glistened in the light that beamed from the small nightstand-lamp.

Felicity admired the ring before putting her hand back on their baby girl's stomach. Oliver's hand rested over hers as he leaned over, pressing one of the softest, but still most passionate kisses, to her lips.

That's how they fell asleep. Together, happy and newly engaged, with their baby girl between them.

And Felicity didn't tell him that she was pregnant again until a week later.

* * *

_**Note: So? What did you guys think? I'm honestly not as happy with this as I was with "Domesticity and House Guests", I mean, I like it, but I liked the other one better. Still, comments are always appreciated! =)**_

_**Love you guys!**_

_**xx**_


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